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afraid Definition

afraid (ə frād′)

adjective

feeling fear; frightened; apprehensive: followed by of, that, or an infinitive: often used informally to indicate regret I'm afraid I can't go

Etymology: ME affraied, pp. of affraien, affray

afraid Synonyms

afraid

modif.

  1. Apprehensive of the future

    hesitant, anxious, apprehensive, disturbed, frightened, fearful, scared, nervous, timorous, cautious, uneasy, timid, jittery, fidgety, alarmed, cowed, intimidated, cowardly, dismayed, daunted, disheartened, disquieted, discouraged, perplexed, worried, perturbed, upset, distressed, fainthearted, jumpy*, leery*, chicken*, shaky*, shook-up*.

    Antonyms confident*, self-assured*, fearless. *

  2. Gripped by fear

    scared, frightened, terrified, panic-stricken, in a fright, terror-stricken, terrorized, petrified, shocked, frozen, aghast, nerves all shot, alarmed, startled, aroused, horrified, stunned, rattled, unnerved, affrighted, struck dumb, trembling, in awe, in consternation, as though looking into an abyss, blanched, ashen, white as a sheet*, frightened to death*, scared to death*, scared stiff*, out of one's wits*, out of one's senses*, in a funk*.

    Antonyms brave*, unafraid, bold.

afraid is applied to a general feeling of fear or disquiet and is the broadest in application of all the words considered here to be afraid of the dark, to be afraid to die; frightened implies a sudden, usually temporary seizure of fear the child was frightened by the dog; timid implies a lack of courage or self-confidence and suggests overcautiousness or shyness too timid to ask for an explanation; fearful suggests a feeling of disquiet and a tendency to worry rather than an alarming fear fearful of making an error; timoroussuggests fearfulness and lack of confidence as a habitual state of mind raised a timorous objection; terrified implies intense, overwhelming fear he stood terrified as the tiger charged

afraid Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • tidings: In everlasting remembrance shall the righteous be, he shall not be afraid of evil tidings.
  • wolf: Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf Who's afraid of the big bad wolf Big bad wolf, big bad wolf?
  • spider: On the contrary, people who are afraid of spiders are less good at remembering what particular spiders they have seen.
  • dark: Although he is not afraid of the dark he cannot continue without his flashlight.
  • height: I'm not afraid of heights, only of falling.
  • consequence: He knew his own guilt, and he was afraid of the consequences.

Preposition: that

Hon: Clive Efford ( Eltham ) ( Lab ): I am afraid that the hon.

Infinitive complement

  • ask: Do not be afraid to ask for advice or support.
  • admit: People were afraid to admit it for fear of being excommunicated.
  • speak: Dr. Jarvis says: " Don't be afraid to speak to your GP.
  • haggle: Don't be afraid to haggle when buying new.
  • criticize: He shows enthusiasm for the band but is not afraid to criticize when appropriate and there are plenty of opportunities for this.
  • say: Mapping is, I'm afraid to say, the easy part.

Modifying Another Word

  • mortally: The system which works on a killer logic is mortally afraid of the freaky, joyous act.
  • somewhat: Me over the then units then somewhat afraid to.
  • too: You're probably too afraid to leave the house.
  • not: We're not afraid of the word, " genius " .

Used with adjective complement

  • seem: The system seems very afraid of color, of flash, of high joyful energy.
  • feel: ST: " New things frighten some people; you can notice that even in children, they feel afraid, insecure " .
  • become: Some taxi drivers in the kingdom now say they have become afraid to transport foreign passengers.